The Chessboard rose between them like a floating battlefield. It was not common wood or stone, but a construct forged directly from a Law.
Lucien imdiately sensed it.
A pulse. It was soft, greedy, and deliberate.
The board drew a fragnt of energy from both players.
Lucien was surprised. He turned his head left and right. The good thing was that no one seed to notice his divine energy.
After the board drank energy from the two players, a change occured.
Lines of runes ignited. Each square shimred faintly.
And then...
...the pieces awakened.
— The pawns beca armored spirits exuding faint killing intent
— The rooks were like mini fortresses
— The knights coiled with spatial energy
— The bishops radiated shifting light
— The queens emanated sovereign majesty
— The kings radiated dormant calamity
Lucien’s army glowed gold.
The scholar’s army pulsed crimson.
When the board stabilized, a hush fell across the plaza.
Even those who had never touched a chess piece could feel it.
This was not just a ga. This was a battlefield forged from ideas.
Marie swallowed.
"Holy crap... it looks like that board could erase my soul if I touch it."
Lucien cracked his knuckles.
"Good thing we’re not using our souls as pieces, then."
Even Eirene, composed as always, narrowed her eyes.
"That board is an heirloom of the Obsidian Collegium. I didn’t expect them to bring it..."
The youngest Obsidian scholar lifted his hand and his third eye opened, glowing like a crimson star.
"Prepare yourself," he said calmly. "In this ga, one cannot bluff. Only truth and foresight matter."
Lucien cracked his neck.
"Good. I excel in both."
Just then...
A ripple spread outward.
The plaza’s ambient Laws stirred as if sensing the challenge.
A translucent barrier descended, enclosing the two players.
The Law of Combat humd in resonance with the boardas though recognizing a duel worthy of its attention.
Lucien smiled lightly.
"Since you’re so confident, I’ll let you take the first move."
A murmur swept through the crowd.
A wave of murmurs washed over the spectators.
"He gave away the first move to the scholar?!"
"Reckless..."
"Is he insane?"
The scholar smirked.
"Don’t regret it later."
The young scholar then made the first move.
A single piece marched forward—
and the ground itself trembled.
Gasps erupted.
"W-why is a pawn shaking the plaza?!"
"This ga... this is definitely not simple. Even a basic advance burns energy!"
Lucien narrowed his eyes. He felt it clearly.
When it was his turn, his divine energy began to burn. It was as if the longer he took to think of his next move, the longer the board drained his energy.
’So the match ends either when soone is checkmated, or when their energy collapses. How troubleso.’
Lucien activated his Perfect Calculation and Perfect Loop. With the combination of the skills, every path and every move unfolded before him.
He lifted a single pawn.
The mont he did, he felt it. The piece he touched was bound to his hand. Unless he moved that exact piece, he wouldn’t be able to let go.
He smiled. ’So be it.’
Lucien then answered the scholar’s move with a smooth counter.
To those who knew chess, it was a strong, flexible opening.
To those who didn’t, it simply looked elegant and confident.
And for the first ti, the scholar’s third eye narrowed.
The third eye flashed.
He saw branching possibilities... hundreds, thousands... each visualized as luminous threads.
He smirked.
"I expected more from you. Sigh. I can already see your next seven moves."
Lucien shrugged.
"I only need one."
Lucien’s next move ca instantly. A golden knight leaped, twisting space like a phantom arc.
A visible shockwave rippled across the square.
The scholar frowned.
"That wasn’t in my predictions."
Lucien smiled politely.
"Then your predictions are too slow."
•••
Pieces moved like living armies.
— Pawns clashed with the roar of soldiers colliding
— Bishops cleaved paths across the board like beams of condensed Law
— Knights teleported in spirals of light
— Rooks thundered forward like ancient storm beasts
The board was anything but quiet.
Every move carried weight.
Every exchange made the plaza tremble ever so slightly.
Even those who didn’t know the rules were enthralled.
"It’s like watching a war between two kingdoms!"
"No... it’s like watching two immortals shape reality!"
The scholar’s third eye shone brighter and brighter.
But each ti he predicted a line—
Lucien’s move severed that line like a blade.
A spectator whispered...
"He’s collapsing the boy’s visions... before they even form."
The youngest scholar’s third eye glowed furiously, analyzing patterns, reading intents and mapping a dozen possible futures.
But sothing was wrong.
He frowned.
’His moves... they overlap with my future readings... even the unlikely ones. Why?!’
He adjusted.
Shifted.
Forced more and more complexity onto the board.
The Chessboard responded with thunder.
Lucien simply smiled...
The youngest scholar’s hand trembled.
"Impossible. No one can erase future paths faster than I can see them."
Lucien smiled faintly.
"Well, I’m not just anyone."
...
A tense sequence unfolded.
Five moves.
Ten moves.
Twenty moves.
The pressure built with each exchange—
even those who didn’t understand chess felt their hearts pounding.
Bystanders gripped their robes.
Transcendents pressed hands against their chests.
Even Celestial cultivators leaned forward unconsciously.
Every ti the scholar struck with a killing formation, Lucien neutralized it with a chillingly precise counter.
Every ti the scholar built a fortress of pieces, Lucien dismantled it with seamless coordination.
Whispers spread:
"It’s like watching two heavens collide!"
"That pawn just killed a knight by itself?!"
"I feel like I’m gaining enlightennt just by watching!"
...
At around the thirtieth move (no one dared count exactly), the scholar froze.
The board pulsed softly.
His pupils shrank.
"No... no, this can’t be."
Lucien raised an eyebrow.
"Sothing wrong?"
The scholar whispered.
"This feeling... You’re not reacting to my moves... I’m reacting to yours."
Lucien’s tone was casual.
"Yes. That’s usually how winning works."
The crowd burst into laughter.
"It’s like the Wolf has already played this match before."
"No... it’s like he’s playing after the match. He already knows the ending."
"It feels... inevitable."
Even the senior Obsidian scholars looked shaken.
•••
Lucien lifted a piece.
A rook, glowing like a falling star.
He placed it gently.
CLACK.
The mont it touched the board—
A wave of Law exploded outward.
Dust spiraled into the air.
The ground trembled.
The board glowed like a miniature sun.
The scholar staggered backwards.
"That formation...
that alignnt...
It seals every path..."
Lucien finished softly.
"Checkmate."
The board dimd.
The pieces dissolved into light.
And then... that light surged toward Lucien.
The energies that had birthed the pieces returned, flowing back into him... along with the mana from the scholar.
Lucien froze in astonishnt.
He felt his inner realm expand. The scholar’s energy was so pure it made his inner world breathe.
’Crap! Unexpected gain! I want to play again!’ he thought.
But then—
BOOOOOOM
The plaza erupted.
"He did it!"
"He beat the Obsidian Collegium’s prodigy!"
"A Transcendent under fifty defeated a scholar who sees futures!"
A Goliath fell to his knees.
"This... THIS is strategy made manifest!"
Even Celestial Realm experts nodded with undisguised admiration.
The eldest Obsidian scholar closed his eyes.
"...He played like an ancient immortal reincarnated."
The youngest bowed deeply. His face was pale as his mana was nearly drained.
"...As promised.
My storage ring."
But still... reluctance flickered on his face.
Lucien accepted it casually.
"Pleasure doing business."
Marie slapped his arm.
"SHOW-OFF!" But her grin was wider than anyone’s.
Marie couldn’t stop talking, excitent bubbling over.
"Haha is that even still chess?
The visuals were so insane I thought you were just pulling random moves—
and you STILL WON!"
Lucien just shrugged.
On the side, Eirene stood quietly.
Her fragrance softened, sweetened, and thickened. Her eyes glittered like blades dipped in starlight.
’This man... Brother Luc... What exactly are you?’
Talent beyond logic. Power concealed beneath layers of Laws.
And now this...
A mind sharper than a scholar’s third eye.
A strategist who could kill with silence and calculation.
Eirene pressed a hand lightly to her chest as if steadying her heart.
’My Equivalent Exchange is never wrong...
He must not slip away.
Both he and Sister Marie might change the fate of the world soday...’
Her fragrance sweetened further, laced with resolve.
•••
High above, atop one of the sun-forged towers, the Solar Concordium observed everything in silence.
His voice did not echo aloud this ti.
"Interesting. Very interesting indeed."
He had already seen Lucien’s true form.
"Not a monster.
Not a beastman.
Not a native of this era either..."
His eyes narrowed, amused.
"Soone the world has forgotten how to na."
He folded his arms.
"If fate pushes you into the world’s center, little wolf... then I shall watch."
His gaze shifted toward the Obsidian Collegium scholars.
"And you five... your path of ’Equilibrium’ may cross his again.
For better or worse."
The Eternal chuckled softly.
"In the ridian Gate, destiny is forged by contest.
Let the world see what kind of empire this man carves."
Golden light winked out.
•••
The five scholars retreated to a quiet terrace. The murmurs of the crowd faded behind them.
The Eldest scholar spoke first.
"You felt it as well, right?... Divine Energy. The others might not have realized it, but it’s unmistakable... That young man can wield divine energy."
He clenched his fist.
"As for what our junior brother saw... He likely glimpsed sothing described in our ancient records... A soul that died, lived again, shattered, and reforged. It wasn’t common but not impossible."
He paused, then added...
"If he grows unchecked, he may either save this world... or end it."
The Second Scholar replied with a sigh.
"So we were mistaken then. No evil being can wield such purity... Not only that, he is extrely talented. It was as if he played chess from the end backwards."
The third scholar, the chill senior brother, spoke next.
"That style... it’s like he was the ancestor himself."
He wore a strangely refreshed smile as he turned to his junior brother.
"Junior Brother... it looks like you’ve found your rival. Well, it’s not bad to taste defeat once in a while. GAHAHA."
The Fourth Scholar, the peak Ascendant Realm expert, spoke too.
"Sigh... Even I can’t win against Junior Brother’s strategies. Well, I suppose that makes him a fitting rival."
The Youngest Scholar with the third eye trembled slightly.
"Senior Brothers, I must apologize for dragging you all into this. My third eye was not wrong. No... what I saw was not evil... it was incomprehensible. It was my comprehension that fell short."
His fingers brushed his forehead.
"I still do not know what he is... But I am certain of one thing..."
All four seniors turned to him.
The youngest exhaled shakily.
"...He will change the fate of this continent."
Silence fell.
They all looked toward the plaza again, where Lucien stood laughing with Marie.
A harmless smile.
A casual pose.
A young man full of spirit.
But the air around him...
To them, it was like a calm sea hiding a leviathan.
The eldest lowered his head.
"We misjudged him today. But mark my words—"
His eyes hardened like obsidian.
"—we must never misjudge him again."
The youngest clenched his fist.
And looked at Lucien not with hatred—
—but with the fire of a rival.
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